Navia was a married woman. You knew it was wrong, but you found yourself falling head over heels for her, despite everything telling you to stay away.

Yet, Navia couldn't bring herself to accept your feelings. She knew it was wrong, too, so she resorted to washing down her emotions with any alcoholic beverage she could find, using alcohol to drown out the turmoil inside her. She wasn’t a lesbian. She couldn’t be... at least that’s what she kept telling herself, over and over, as if repetition could make the lie true.

---

“Another shot, please,” Navia sighed, her voice laced with exhaustion as she glanced at you from across the bar. You handed her the glass, your fingers brushing hers. She cupped your hand over the glass for a brief second, the warmth of her touch sending a shiver through you. “Thank you, baby,” she whispered, the word slipping from her lips so casually, yet it burned into your soul.

Archons, did you love this woman. But you had convinced yourself she would never feel the same way. You couldn't force your love onto her, nor would you ever want to. So you did what you always did—hid behind a mask of indifference, offering her a listening ear instead of the confession that constantly threatened to escape your lips.

"He cheated again... I don't know what to do anymore," Navia murmured, burying her face into her arm.

You hated seeing her like that. You hated how she was with a man who couldn't realize how lucky he was for the life of him.

You hated how your first thought, despite her pain, was how you could be a much better partner for her.